Quote:
Originally Posted by Joxe  If DRM makes piracy more difficult, then why was Spore out on the internet a week before the official retail release? |
Because it's not the average Joe game buyer or 8-year old video game consumer (or his/her parents) who put
Spore on the internet a week before official retail release.
The effect of DRM on piracy is an acute vs. chronic issue—decrease in potential for piracy in a small and short-term way coupled with an overall long-term increase in piracy. This has been demonstrated in many examples for the past few years.
Spore is one example, and
World of Goo is an example of the opposite (high initial piracy rate—90%?—with higher overall long-term sales from happy customers), though it's really too early to tell what its long-term sales will be like.